The Hawaii Employers Council (HEC), in collaboration with the Employers Association of America (EAA), has published the 2024-2025 National Business Trends Survey results, offering critical insights into the challenges and opportunities facing businesses today. This year’s Hawaii Business Trends Survey, a subset of the national survey, reflects a growing sense of optimism, with 33.3% of Hawaii executives expecting economic improvement in 2025, nearly doubling last year’s 17.1%.
Key Findings: Hawaii vs. National Trends
While Hawaii often diverges from national trends in policy and program implementation, this year’s survey reveals shared short-term challenges:
- Talent Acquisition Tops the List: Over half of Hawaii executives (58.4%) identified talent acquisition as their most pressing concern, aligning with national findings.
- Cybersecurity and Retention: Cybersecurity (55.3%) and talent retention (45.5%) follow closely as critical short- and long-term challenges.
- Competitive Pay and Workforce Development: Both are vital, with 78.2% of organizations in Hawaii planning wage increases to address recruitment and retention challenges.
Workforce Insights
Hawaii organizations continue to face recruitment difficulties, primarily due to:
- Lack of qualified candidates (76.9%)
- Rising salary expectations (67.3%)
- Market competition (50.0%)
Strategies implemented to combat these challenges include:
- Increasing starting salaries (68.0%)
- Upskilling existing employees with potential to learn/grow (52.6%)
- Leveraging social media for recruiting (52.6%)
On retention, top approaches include upward pay adjustments (66.7%) and enhanced employee training and development (61.5%).
Hybrid Work and Technology
Remote and hybrid work remain niche in Hawaii, with many organizations requiring employees to work in-office. However, the survey highlights a growing interest in integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) for process improvement, talent sourcing, and marketing.
Looking Ahead to 2025
Hawaii businesses are optimistic, with 64.1% projecting revenue growth—higher than the national average of 61.7%. Top initiatives include:
- Investing in new technologies and equipment
- Expanding recruitment efforts
- Enhancing employee engagement programs
Stay Informed
HEC conducts a variety of compensation and benefits surveys to provide data useful in developing and administering compensation and benefit plans, and personnel policies. Custom snapshots and comparison reports from our compensation surveys are available, along with customized, proprietary surveys conducted on your behalf. Our Survey & Compensation experts can also work with members on employee opinion surveys to identify gaps between being an employer of choice and being merely an employer. For more information, please contact Dawn Mitchell, Manager, Surveys & Compensation Services (dmitchell@hecouncil.org), or Susan Amuro, Surveys & Research Analyst (samuro@hecouncil.org).
Invitation to Review Full Report
Business leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders are invited to review the full report for a deeper understanding of these trends. The detailed findings are crucial for staying ahead in the evolving business environment. For the complete 2023-2024 National Business Trends Survey, contact McKenna Arnold at marnold@cascadeemployers.com or (503) 585-4320. For the Hawaii Business Trends Survey Highlights, visit www.hecouncil.org.